IT Spending Expected to Rise in the Next Year

NEW York – Nearly half of retail executives surveyed by KPMG LLP expect their information technology (IT) spending to increase next year. However, those surveyed only expect modest improvements in company revenue and hiring in 2012.

One hundred senior retail executives were surveyed during May and June. The executives don’t expect to see a full economic recovery to take place before 2013 at the earliest, said the audit, tax and advisory firm. “Retail executives are more fully understanding the economic picture and are not as confident of an economic rebound as they were a year ago,” said Mark Larson, KPMG’s global retail leader. “What they will do is gain a competitive edge to invest in technology to add new customers and grow revenue from existing customers.”

Forty-seven percent of the retail executives surveyed said they intend to increase IT spending during the next year, by far their highest priority area, according to KPMG. Geographic expansion, investment in new products and services and acquisition of a business ranked second, third and fourth respectively.

When asked when a full recovery would take place, 12 percent said within the next year, 26 percent responded by the end of 2012, 40 percent said the end of 2013 and 26 percent said by the end of 2014 or later.

On the flip side, 72 percent of executives surveyed said they have a “great deal” of cash on their balance sheets.